


Once Upon a December

by SummerLeighWind



Category: Guardians of Childhood - William Joyce, Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Child Abandonment, Compromising, F/M, Families of Choice, Gen, Kidnapping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-24
Updated: 2013-05-09
Packaged: 2017-12-09 08:45:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,373
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/772279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SummerLeighWind/pseuds/SummerLeighWind
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mother Nature glowers at the older spirit. "You owe me," she says.</p><p>Pitch sighs dramatically. "If I must."</p><p>Mother Nature bites back a smirk and presses Jack a bit closer to her. "You must," she parrots. Then turning away from the two males, she says to Pitch, "I'll be back in a couple days." She tilts her head in thought then. "By the end of the week, at latest."</p><p>One taloned hand coming to grip Jack Frost's shoulder, Pitch acknowledges the contract with a dip of his chin. "I'll eat him for dinner if you aren't back in time."</p><p>Mother Nature's head swerves, a funny smirk upon her face. "Well, I'll just have to keep to my promise, won't I?" Fog materializes around the woman and then, she's gone.</p><p>Turning his innocent face up to the Nightmare King, Jack questions fearfully, "You won't eat me, will you?"</p><p>Pitch chuckles darkly. "If you behave, no, I don't think so."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I

Jack Frost ducks behind a bush, straining his ears for the sound of footsteps; he realizes a moment later that he can hear them, but not in the direction he wants. A hand suddenly yanks him up by his cloak from his hiding spot and he stares at the dark woman holding him with huge blue eyes. The beetle-black eyes narrow stormily and with pursed apple-red lips she scowls, "You've been following me."

Jack fights back the urge to squirm, to flee, instead he stares right back and says, "You see me."

The woman rolls her eyes. "Why wouldn't I? I'm _Mother Nature_ and you are obviously some nature sprite."

Jack cocks his head to the side. "You're not very old-looking, shouldn't a mother look older?" he inquires.

The woman glares at him. "I suggest you control that lip before I dispatch you whence you came."

Jerking his head in the direction of the lake, Jack remarks, "Go ahead, I came from that lake, but I don't think it'll do much; I'll just freeze it."

Mother Nature's eyes grow in alarm. "Came from the _lake_?" she asks.

"Um, yeah?" Jack agrees.

"It's nearly forty feet deep," the woman murmurs.

Jack tries to shrug, but fails from the woman's awkward hold on his clothes. "Whelp, all I know is I woke up right above it and that guy–" pointing to the moon, Jack says, "–told me my name was Jack Frost and left me to it."

Releasing her hold on the teenager, Mother Nature's face ripples with several emotions. "Nothing else? No explanation? No guidance?"

Jack shakes his head, feeling really confused and ecstatic that someone else feels the same way about the moon as he does. "Nope," he answers, popping his lips on the p.

Outrage overcomes the woman's countenance, but it's quickly erased with fury. " _Oh,_ that _simply_ won't do," she growls. "You shall come with me," she says, snagging his wrist. "I'll find you someone to stay with while I go _talk_ to that capricious fool."

Trotting along side her, Jack struggles against her vice-like grip for a moment before giving up. "Who do I get to stay with? How are you going to talk to the Man in the _M_ _oon_? _Especially_ since you're _Mother Nature,_ won't the earth, like, collapse without you?" Jack prattles with a mixture of giddiness and anxiety.

"Silence boy," Mother Nature snaps at him. Jack shrinks back. Mother Nature's eyes soften and she sighs. Reaching out she pats his cheeks once and says, "I'm not angry with you–annoyed, yes–but not angry, I promise."

Jack sucks in a calming breath and bobs his head. "Okay," he whispers.

Mother Nature pauses in her purposeful stride to gaze at him for a moment. "I'll be keeping you, though," she tells him, her eyes almost turn fond as she toys with a lock of his white hair. "A nature sprite like yourself needs guidance, I can teach you what you need to know."

Jack grins hopefully. "Really?" he asks almost shyly.

Mother Nature's eyes seem to lighten to a shade not so detestable and her marble cheeks flush with a lively pink. "Yes, you'll be mine."

Jack worms his wrist away and makes it so they are holding hands. Pulling lightly at her hand, he asks, "Who am I going to stay with?"

Her eyes distance themselves from him as she replies, "With a man by the name of Pitch Black, he owes me one."

Almost skipping (but not, because that's for _girls_ ), Jack goes on to ask, "Is he like us?"

Her eyes seem to take on a sharp–almost sad–glint to them. "Oh yes, he is fear personified."

"Fear, huh?" Jack repeats absently. It's not like it matters all that much to him, if Mother Nature thinks he safe enough to leave him with, he can't be _that_ scary, right?

Mother Nature's eyes flicker to him, but she doesn't say a word. She leads him further, takes him deeper into the woods than he's ever cared to explore. She brings him to a clearing the moon's light doesn't reach and has Jack trail behind her to the middle. She stops suddenly, kicking a pebble, it falls into the gigantic hole in front of them and a belated minute later, a tall figure made of shadows and age-tarnished gold eyes appears. Smiling a shark-sharp smile at Mother Nature, the man inquires, "What's brought you here, dear?"

Mother Nature tenses, Jack wonders, but doesn't think about it. "I have business, but I need a place to keep him," she explains pulling Jack forth for Pitch to inspect.

Eyes raking up and down his skinny, pale form, Pitch sneers and rumbles, "Why ever would I keep him for you?"

Mother Nature glowers at the older spirit. "You owe me," she says.

Pitch sighs dramatically. "If I _must_."

Mother Nature bites back a smirk and presses Jack a bit closer to her. "You must," she parrots. Then turning away from the two males, she says to Pitch, "I'll be back in a couple days." She tilts her head in thought then. "By the end of the week, at latest."

One taloned hand coming to grip Jack Frost's shoulder, Pitch acknowledges the contract with a dip of his chin. "I'll eat him for dinner if you aren't back in time."

Mother Nature's head swerves, a funny smirk upon her face. "Well, I'll just have to keep to my promise, won't I?" Fog materializes around the woman and then, she's gone.

Turning his innocent face up to the Nightmare King, Jack questions fearfully, "You won't eat me, will you?"

Pitch chuckles darkly. "If you behave, no, I don't think so."

Jack exhales his relief, one hand over his spastic heart. "Good."

Curiously, Pitch takes in the boy's face and inquires, "What's your name boy?"

"Jack Frost!" he chirps, a smile blooming on his face.

Pitch snorts a laugh and shakes his head. "Always the winter spirits, with you isn't it Mother Nature?" he remarks to the sky.

Jack, well, he decides he'd rather not ask what Pitch is talking about.

* * *

Bouncing along beside the imposing figure, Jack asks, "So, what are we doing Pitch?"

Gliding along the shadow's edge, Pitch doesn't say anything at first; next, he ducks into a little settlement and creeps up beside a window to look in. "Black will do," he rebuffs, then sinking his talons into a sill he smirks at the tiny flushed faces lining a mattress on the home's floor. "And to what _I'm_ doing, I'm going to give these children nightmares."

Jack frowns, squishing his face against the pane of glass. "Why?" He frowns. "That doesn't sound _fun._ "

Pitch sends him a glare that lets Jack know he's an idiot. " _Fun_?" he scoffs, "not everything in life is about _fun,_ boy." Flicking a finger, some black sand seeps underneath the glass and slithers across the floor to the little girl on the edge of the bed. It attacks with surprising accuracy, taking the shape of a child lost in a woods, which then turns to a child being chased by a pack of starving wolves. Pointing to the nightmare, Pitch makes Jack watch. "See that? It's a reminder–a warning–it reinforces lessons a child needs to know to survive."

Jack blinks, slowly taking in the sight as the girl fusses and abruptly jumps from her bed with a shriek. Her mother comes running, snatching the tearful child in her arms (Jack wonders if Mother Nature will comfort him when he's scared).

"Okay," Jack says, "I get it, I think."

Pitch glances at him in astonishment. "Do you?" he asks. "Do you truly understand that I don't scare the children out of malicious intent? That I do it for their own good?" He glowers doubtfully.

Jack frowns. "Why would you lie?"

Pitch turns his eyes skyward and smothers a smile. "Heaven's stars help this boy, how naive he is."

"What's that mean?" Jack whines.

Pitch looks to him, his eyes appear for fraction of a second to be worn and defeated. "Some aren't in the business in believing fear is beneficial."

Jack doesn't know who these people are, but he decides he doesn't like them already. "Well they're stupid." He scowls.

Pitch blinks once and then barks rusty sounding laughter. "Aren't you just a treat?" He smirks. "Come, let's do something _fun,_ as you say."

Jack whoops and races ahead waving for the formable spirit to hurry. "C'mon Pitch! At this rate it's gonna take us _all_ night to get somewhere with snow!" Pitch shakes his head and strolls after the boy.

* * *

Running a hand through the white hair, Mother Nature asks, "Did he behave?"

Pitch smirks. "As well as expected, he doesn't seem to know when to stop prattling, I've noticed."

Mother Nature frowns a little. "The Man in the Moon let him wonder around without guidance for almost a _hundred_ years."

Pitch taps his chin thoughtfully. "That is unfortunate, I assume he doesn't have any believers?"

"No, I don't think he does," Mother Nature says with thinned lips.

Coming over, Pitch combs back the boy's white fringe; Jack leans in, a smile on his face. "You're welcome to bring him here anytime."

Mother Nature turns wondrous eyes on him. "Really?" she questions.

"He's not so bad," Pitch remarks, then glancing away he huffs, "I guess."

Gathering the winter sprite in her arms, Mother Nature nods. "I will." Timidly, she whispers, "We'll see you soon."

Pitch nods and disappears into the shadows of his lair, leaving Mother Nature to find her own way from the labyrinth.


	2. II

Sweeping his staff across the field, Jack watches with great pleasure as frost forms and settles on the brittle grass. Taking a step forward, he throws his arms wide and spins; snow begins to fall around him. Stricken with good cheer, Jack begins to hum softly. Trekking back to the familiar lake of Burgess, Jack's nonessential notes take on a familiar tune; mouth opening, quiet, contented words fall from his lips.

" _Chestnuts roasting on an open fire..._ " The winter sprite sings, humming a little more, his voice rises as he breaks into song again, " _Jack Frost nipping at your nose!_ " He laughs abruptly, many would say his believers are non-existent; but, in his few hundred years he's managed to carve out a little piece of winter just for himself. Oblivious to the eyes watching and waiting on the outskirts of the woods he's heading straight for, the winter sprite's voice lilts in song once more; " _To kids from one to ninety two, although it's been said many times, many ways, Merry Christmas to you; merry Christmas to you, merry Christmas to you, merry Christmas to you!_ " He closes his eyes then, later, Jack will be able to trace his downfall to this very mistake.

* * *

When Jack Frost comes to, he realizes with great excitement he's in Santa's Workshop; a place he's only every heard of from Mother and Pitch, a place he's only attempted to break into a _billion_ times! Awing at the fantastic-ness of the place, he nearly misses the chuckle. Head whipping around he sees Santa himself-just as jolly as Mother always told him and just as fat as Pitch always described-Scrambling up to his feet, Jack blurts, "You're Santa, erm, North? I think I remember you prefer that name?"

The older male laughs good-naturedly and offers a hand. "Yes, North will do." He concurs.

Accepting the hand with a bit of hesitation, Jack tells North "Mother won't be happy when I'm not where I promised to be."

The man's eyebrows shoot to the middle of his forehead. "You know _Mother Nature_?"

Catching moving forms from the corner of his eye, Jack absently nods and cries with great enthusiasm, "Hey it's the kangaroo!"

"I'm a Pooka you brat!" Bunnymund snaps, glaring down the young winter spirit.

Waving a hand, Jack then tips his head to the Sandman, "Hey Sandy." He grins; the little man waves. He next walks over to Toothiana and he smiles with all his teeth and introduces himself. "I'm Jack Frost!" North watches the woman's eyes dilate, but before she can shove her hands into the poor boy's mouth Bunnymund's snagging her wrist and dragging her back. The young winter sprite looks on in mild confusion, but lets it all go with a shake of his head as he turns back to North.

"So, what made you decide to kidnap me? You could have just asked me to come." He says to the older man, slightly disgruntle at this point.

"We weren't sure you would come if asked." Toothiana explains.

Curiously, the boy glances at all of them and frowns. "Why's that? Is it because you guys have ignored me for the last odd hundred years?" He inquires, at their flinches, he half-heartedly tries to placate them. "It's cool, ya know," he remarks, "Mother and Pitch have been really good about keeping me busy."

"Pitch?" Is the strangled whisper of Toothiana.

Jack's face mars with confusion as the rest of them begin to fret and fight off fright. "Yeah?" Jack repeats uncertainly.

"He's why you're here!" Bunnymund roars.

Defensively, Jack mutters, "He didn't _do_ anything."

The Pooka snorts and Jack fights the urge to bristle. "Look, I don't know why you think Pitch did something, but I'm not getting involved." He explains to them firmly.

"He's trying to bring the world back to the Dark Ages though!" Toothiana cries.

Jack faces her, frowning troubled. "No, I would have noticed that." He murmurs, "Mother and I visit often enough..."

"Mother? You mean Mother Nature, yes?" North demands quietly.

Jack gives the older winter spirit a passing glance. "Yeah, what of it?"

"She's never mentioned _you_." The old man mutters.

"You _talk_ to the loony Sheila?" Bunnymund sputters.

North flushes an out of place red and shifts his eyes away. "Yes, something like that."

"Giving away our secrets are you North?" A crisp voice jeers from behind the gathered group.

"M!"

"Mother!"

The two winter spirits call simultaneously as everyone moves to stare at the interlopers. "I didn't realize _Guardians_ are kidnapping _children_ now." Pitch sneers, stepping away from Mother Nature's shadow.

Rattled, the Guardians stare at the pair coming up behind Jack Frost in shock. "What are _you_ doing here?" Toothiana hisses.

Flicking back a lock of hair, Mother Nature sneers, (it looks like the one on Pitch's face a bit too much) "Do you think I'd come looking for my lost sprite without help?"

Some hesitate, but not E. Aster Bunnymund, "No, I'll give ya that, but!" Finger pointing accusingly at Pitch, he spits, "But, why _him_?"

Mother Nature's features morph to a look far too innocent and confused. "What do you mean? Why _wouldn't_ I bring my sprite's grandfather along?"

"We've talked about these _notions_ MN, I _watch_ him for you, I am _not_ going to play at this game of family with you." Pitch chides the younger.

Color blooms across the woman's face and she looks torn between a tirade and crying, but before she can do either, Jack bounds away from the Guardians and to those he calls his family. "Hey! I'm okay! You guys are okay! Let's get out of here, before they try and convince me Pitch not only wants to send the world into the Dark Ages again; but wants to rule the universe too!" As the teenager babbles this, the two dark-haired spirits stare down at Jack in astoundment.

"They said _what_ now?" Mother Nature demands, snagging her boy's chin so he's to look straight in her eye.

Seeing that something very wrong's going on, Jack glances away and then back to Mother. "ThatPitchwasplanningtotakevoertheworld?" He slurs.

Apple-red lips thinning unhappily, she orders, "Enunciate _Jacky_."

The boy's shoulders slump, while he can't say he likes the Guardians (not after kidnapping him _or_ after insulting his family), but he doesn't want to get them in _trouble_. Taking a breath, the boy slows his speech and says, " _They_ said, _MiM_ said that Pitch was planning to put the world back in the Dark Ages."

Standing back up, Mother nature ruffles her winter sprite's white hair. "Thank you, Jack, why don't you head to Pitch's lair? We'll meet you there in a bit."

The teenager frowns, "Why can't I stick around? They wanted to make me for _some_ reason! Shouldn't I get to find out _why_?" He's scowling now, that stubborn planting of his feet bellying his seriousness.

Mother Nature sighs. " _Okay,_ " Turning a glacial glare to the gathered Guardians, she asks, "What did you need _my_ winter sprite for?"

Jack protests at sprite, but everyone ignores him.

Taking up the challenge, North steps forward and answers his elder's question. "We don't know, Man in the Moon say he tell us once we all here."

Staring up at the ceiling, Mother Nature crosses her arms impatiently and shouts, "Let's here it _Perseus*_! What could you possibly need _my_ boy for!?"

The Guardians look between each other than to Pitch and Jack, the teenager shrugs and Pitch's lips only twitch with a smirk.

"Oh!" North murmurs suddenly and at the same time, Mother Nature hollers,

"No!"

"He wants you as Guardian with us Jack!" North exclaims.

The Frost spirit cocks his head and frown. "What?"

"I don't care what that jerk says! He's so separate from everything, he hasn't a _clue_ what he's doing!" Mother Nature protests.

"Do I get any say? What does he want me for anyway?" Jack inquires, struggling to be heard over his irate protector.

"He want you to defeat Pitch." North explains.

Looking to his longtime protector, Jack wrinkles his nose and questions. "You aren't planning to send the world into a new Dark Age are you?"

The Nightmare King snorts. "Hardly," the faces of the guardian's contort in disbelief, so Pitch hurries to elaborate. "In today's times, it's rather difficult for someone, such as I, to stay strong." A deprecating smile on his lips, he mutters, "It's rather hard to compete with terrorists, mass murderers and kidnappers."

Sandy makes a point of makes a giant billowing image of Pitch moving all over giving nightmares to children.

Pitch sighs, "If I understand, yes, I've been visiting more children-even ones who don't need nightmares-but, I'm simply trying to keep _up_ , ensure I do not fade away into oblivion."

Mother Nature comes and clutches his wrist. "Then there's no reason for Jack to be a Guardian, right?" She implores, staring down the Guardians.

North hums. "We could always do with fresh blood..."

"No!" Mother Nature scowls.

"C'mon Mother!" Jack whines, "It'll be _fun_!"

The woman shakes her head. "No." She repeats

"You and your _fun,_ Jack Frost," Pitch contemplates. Glancing between the boy, Guardians, and Mother Nature, he suggests to the younger spirit beside him, "Come now, MN, let the child have his _fun_ in exchange for not having his first mission be to put my head on a platter."

Displeased, Mother Nature exhales an irritated breath. "I'm not going to get my way, am I?"

Patting the marble white hand, Pitch smiles at her in a vaguely fond way. "No, my dear, I think not."

Taking a breath, Mother Nature faces the three men and one woman, her eyes churning stormily. "Alright, Jack can be apart of your little 'club', but only! Only if you give up on that silly mission of Perseus's."

Jack whoops happily and bounds at the group, puppy-dog eyes full force. "Please guys! Pleeeaaase!" He begs.

"But-!" Bunnymund starts, but North holds up a hand.

" _Da_ , we agree." He decides staring down into the stormy dark eyes.

Leaning in close, Mother Nature grins up at the old man in a lascivious way. "Thank you, Nicholas." She murmurs.

"Anything for you my dear." North tells her, eyelids heavy.

"Oh _please_." Pitch growls, coming forward and dragging back Mother Nature. " _Control_ yourself." He snarls.

The woman only smiles up at him. "Sorry," she apologizes sweetly.

"Is that why I've never met North?" Jack asks, a bit green.

Taking pity on the young man, Toothiana pats his shoulder and mumbles sympathetically. "Yes, I assume so."

And that's how Jack Frost became a Guardian.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoops, forgot to do this when I posted; but, I call MiM Perseus because in another story about him from before he was a guardian that's what I named him.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading :) 
> 
> Please let me know what you think with a kudo and/or a comment!


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